There are a bunch of errands I ought to run today and I want to go to the motorcycle dealership to look at brain buckets.
...but it's only 5 AM and I'm going to go back to bed when I'm done bloviating.
* * *
The weather being so cool this week, it would be a good time to run cable through the attic and switch the antenna wiring.
I discontinued the satellite service. I haven't watched any TV since May; I haven't wanted to. Saturday morning was the first time in three months that I've had the urge to watch something on TV (Powerblock) and I tardily remembered that I no longer have satellite TV--so all I got was "Channel Not Purchased" from the satellite box. Duh.
But for those times when I want to see the news or something, well, the blab slab has a perfectly acceptable digital receiver in it, and if it were to be connected to a proper antenna (one would assume) I could then watch the local broadcast channels.
Since the only television show I expect to watch this fall is on a broadcast channel (House, M.D.) this shouldn't cause any difficulty for me. I just need to hook up the antenna.
* * *
One errand I want to accomplish is to go get brake hoses for the Fiero. I want, at least, to have the damn parts on hand so I can do the repair when the spirit moves me and my back stops bothering me.
It's not that the job itself is so difficult; I've replaced the rear calipers about three times on that car and by now bleeding brakes is second nature. I just have to get into the right frame of mind to do the job, is all.
Probably I should go to AutoZone and inquire about "lifetime replacement" parts. I can't remember what I got for the Fiero that had the lifetime warranty, but when I got the Fiero AutoZone was the closest parts store to the apartment in Cedar Rapids, so that's where I got most of my parts. I know the rear calipers have the lifetime warranty; I just can't remember if any of the pads do.
I will be replacing the pads all around, and probably the left-front rotor...which means also replacing the bearings in the left-front rotor as well. (I suppose I could tap the races out of the old rotor and into the new rotor, because the bearings are still in good shape. Whether or not I should is something I'll have to think about.)
The other thing I need to do is to check the thickness of the rear rotors. When I last did the rear brakes (in 2006) I had to buy new rotors, and they didn't quite fit correctly; I had to radius the inside lip of the "hat" to keep it from scraping on the dust shield. (As described in Fungus #123.)
Now of course I realize that the "made in China" rotors I bought might, y'know, have been the wrong frickin' size or something; and that would account for the excessive pedal travel and such.
*sigh*
...so it's going to take some doing, and it's going to cost a bit. Could be worse, I suppose.
